Vengeance, Chapter Two
by Soquilii
Summary: Eliot Spencer, Alec Hardison and Parker are now the Leverage team. Nate and Sophie, long retired, reside blissfully somewhere in Europe. The team of three has persisted, building their justice-for-hire empire to encompass several countries. Leverage International, Hardison's dream, was now a reality. Now, an old nemesis is back.


**LEVERAGE HEADQUARTERS PORTLAND, OREGON**

Alec Hardison was in a blissful mood for a Monday morning. Pulling his scarf higher against the chilly breeze wafting through the parking garage, he keyed the locking mechanism on his car and all but danced up the sidewalk to the bar pub. The establishment was closed for the holidays; its usual hum of activity silenced. Hardison took the elevator to the top floor. He smiled to himself on the short trip upwards, remembering the wonderful weekend spent with Parker:

_A traveling carnival had set up in a neighboring town; its last stop before going to winter somewhere further south. In a coffee shop one day, Hardison saw a flyer which listed a particular attraction he knew Parker would like; he got a spectacular idea. That Friday, he had driven out to see the carnival owner._

_'Need a favor,' Hardison had said, 'I got a special lady. Want to surprise her. See this? I got it at a gas station. I'll give you fifty bucks to rig it for me and keep that wall clear until we get there Saturday night, and another fifty afterward. We got a deal?'_

_'Sure, buddy, but you give her this and I guarantee she's gonna cut your rope.'_

_'Trust me. It'll work.'_

_'Fine, it's your ass.'_

_That Saturday night, all had gone smoothly. After they left the ferris wheel, Hardison casually suggested the rock climbing wall. Parker glanced up at its thirty-foot height and scoffed. 'A five-year-old could climb this.'_

_'Just my speed. Looks like fun,' said Hardison. 'C'mon.'_

_Parker looked at him scornfully._

_'Race ya to the top.'_

_Parker rolled her eyes. 'Oh, all right.'_

_They donned the rigging and began their ascent. Each had an attendant on the ground manning a safety line. Foot by foot, they made their way up the wall; Parker in the lead all the way. At the summit, a bell cord looped down. Parker pulled it - then did a double take, for the cord was looped through something shiny. Parker signaled her attendant to hold, set her feet and took the object off the cord. It was a plastic ring with a large, cut-glass stone. Tied to it with a bit of ribbon was a slip of paper on which was written, 'Love you, girl - marry me?'_

_Hardison heaved himself up to her level and hung there, his heart in his eyes. She looked at the patently fake ring in her hand then at him, then back at the ring in her hand and back at Hardison. A myriad of expressions crossed her face: quizzical confusion mixed with annoyance._

_'That one's a gag,' Hardison said softly. 'This one's a lot shinier.' He held out a three-carat diamond solitaire with shaking fingers. Parker's face lit up. She grabbed the ring and leaped into Hardison's arms. The attendants below were hard put to hold them both aloft. 'Get off him! Get off him!' one of them yelled. Parker never released Hardison until their feet touched the ground._

From the time the team had first come together, the idiosyncratic Parker had progressed very slowly in her feelings for Alec Hardison. She'd grown accustomed to the gentle, dark-skinned genius. She'd learned to like him. His persistence had paid off; they began cautiously dating from which grew intimacy (Parker typically described this as _wanting pretzels_).

Hardison's patience had at last been rewarded. While a date to marry had not yet been set, the ring was at least a solid declaration. If someday she wanted a piece of paper to validate it, fine. If not…he was happy with the situation as it was.

The elevator door opened.

'Hey!' he called out, stepping briskly into the briefing room.

'In here,' Parker answered. She was perched on the counter in the kitchen next to the espresso machine, sipping coffee. She was wearing the ring, he noticed, holding her hand out in a dainty manner to admire it. Just as any woman would. Almost normal.

'Where's Eliot? We oughta get this show on the road.'

'What show? There hasn't been a client in weeks. I'm bored,' said Parker.

'Got just the thing if you're bored; look over there. And it's _your turn_.'

Scattered where they had fallen through the mail slot in the door was an accumulation of envelopes, mailers and magazines.

'Cool!' said Parker enthusiastically. 'But I want to eat first.'

She hopped down from the counter, opened a cupboard to get a bowl and pulled a box of sweetened cereal from the pantry. Peeling a banana, she sliced it into the bowl and dropped in a handful of small strawberries. Sloshing a bit of milk over the mixture, she added three heaping spoonfuls of sugar.

Hardison watched her uneasily. 'You know, Babe, that much sugar really…isn't…good… for…'

Parker's irritated frown brought Hardison's remarks to a stuttering halt. He quickly segued into a greeting, for their Hitter had just walked in, blithely ignoring the pile of mail on the floor.

'Hey, look what the cat dragged in,' said Hardison, grateful for the interruption; Parker-on-sugar could be dangerous.

Parker, chomping cereal, turned in her chair to greet Eliot, waving her spoon at him. He nodded at her and sauntered in, seemingly in a rare good mood himself.

Hardison grinned knowingly at Eliot. 'Yeah. Aw, _yeah_. Yo' team _won_ last night, didn't it?'

'Team? What team? Oh, _that_ team.' He shrugged. 'I guess they won; we left before halftime. Timbers versus Sounders, two and one last I heard…'

'Any money on 'em?'

'Not this time.'

'_We_, huh? Brunette, blonde or redhead?'

'_Bald_, Hardison! _Bald!_ Jeez, you and Vance…living vicariously through me…'

'I ain't living vicariously thru _nobody_, dude. I _got_ me a woman. Show him, Parker.'

Parker, still crunching cereal, awkwardly raised her hand aloft. Eliot took her hand and gazed at the incredible rock gracing her finger. 'You _didn't_.'

'Damn sho _did_, bro'.'

'M'**_boy_**! _Congratulations_!' Eliot extended his hand for the usual slap-slap fist-bump they often shared. Eliot pecked Parker, who was trying to finish her cereal, on the cheek. 'Guys, that's just fucking _awesome_! So when's the…'

'Aw, we ain't exactly set a date yet,' Hardison said. Parker, focused on breakfast, made no comment. Eliot, quick to pick up on the hint that talk of weddings should be avoided for the time being, let it drop. He tossed a bag of popcorn into the microwave. Football was on in a few minutes and everything was right with the world. While he waited, he poured a giant mug of coffee and sipped it appreciatively. 'Any calls come in? Anyone knocking down our door?'

'Might be…' Hardison tilted his head in the direction of the pile of mail by the door. 'We'll find out soon…'

Parker tilted her bowl and gulped the last of the sugared milk. _'I'm on it!'_ she said enthusiastically. Hardison shot a sidelong glance at her; sure enough, she was primed and off on a sugar high. Parker would be the fastest and most efficient member of the team for several hours, then crash and nap for the rest of the day. With a wry smile, he sat down at his computer.

Eliot set the bowl of fresh popcorn on the coffee table and sprawled on the couch. Football on Hardison's array of multiple screens was always a treat.


End file.
